1849 Norris, Gregg & Norris $5. K-2. Rarity-5. Plain Edge. AU-58 (NGC).A handsome and inviting example of one of the most significant private coinage issues from the California Gold Rush. Both sides are bathed in warm olive-orange patina, the surfaces with a soft satin texture that is uncommonly smooth in hand. Striking detail is generally bold with the only mentionable lack of detail confined to the eagles left leg and the shield on its breast. A significant find at all levels of preservation, this Norris, Gregg & Norris $5 offers pleasing and scarce Choice AU quality for the advanced territorial gold enthusiast. After the discovery of gold in California in 1848, the influx of prospectors and fortune-seekers far exceeded the coin supply, causing serious financial hardship. Trading in gold dust and nuggets was haphazard at best and susceptible to fraud. In the spring of 1849, partners Thomas H. Norris, Hiram A. Norris, and Charles Gregg established in Benicia City what numismatic scholars consider to be the first mint in the territory. Their firm was certainly the first mentioned in the local press. In the May 31, 1849 edition of the <em>Alta California</em>, the editors noted a five-dollar gold coin struck at nearby Benicia City, noting "In general appearance it resembles the United States coin of the same value, but it bears the private stamp of Norris, Grieg [sic] & Norris, and is in other particulars widely different." It is interesting that it was described as resembling federal coins of the time, when in actuality the design of the Norris, Gregg & Norris $5 is notably different. In 1849, the firm struck several varieties of $5 gold pieces with plain and reeded edges, as well as with or without a period after the word ALLOY. The coins seem to have been accepted at the time as borne out by the variety of grades observed. Some brokers questioned the coins, but assays by Jacob R. Eckfeldt and William E. DuBois at the United States Mint substantiated their purity. At some point around 1850, Norris, Gregg & Norris established a branch in Stockton. A solitary 1850-dated $5 coin is known marked STOCKTON and is permanently impounded in the Smithsonian collection. Norris, Gregg & Norris faded into history with no indication of when they ceased operations; references to the coins in local papers had ceased by 1851. Probably struck in limited numbers, and rare today, these coins stand as testimony to the firms brief minting operations and the start of private coinage in Gold Rush California.From the Blue Ridge Mountains Portfolio.
